Headway Thames Valley regularly makes trips in and out of Reading town centre to pick-up and drop off clients and take them to the charity’s facility in Henley

A charity which helps people with head injuries in Reading has made little ‘headway’ with the borough council which keeps sending out bus lane fines.

Headway Thames Valley regularly makes trips in and out of Reading town centre to pick-up and drop off clients and take them to the charity’s facility in Henley.

It has two buses equipped with wheelchair lifts so it can pick disabled people up at the kerbside.

However, sometimes the drivers have to park in bus lanes in order to pick up people – who have often been referred to the charity by the borough council.

As a result, Headway has been collecting mounting fines from the borough council for breaching its bus lane regulations.

Although Reading Borough Council is happy to exempt charities in these circumstances, Headway manager Wendy Carlson has sent the council the details of the charity’s bus registration numbers – but to no avail.

She said the most recent penalty charge notice related to the charity bus parking in London Street in Central Reading on March 13.

Ms Carlson appealed, pointing out the charity was exempt.

She said: “You go online and tell them you don’t want to pay it.

“You don’t hear anything, so you ring them up, then you are told that it’s been cancelled, you hear nothing and then you get another notice.”

She said: “I wouldn’t mind except that I had already filled in all the paperwork – one-and-a-half pages of A4 with all our registration numbers – in order to get us put on a list of exemptions.”

Despite doing that Headway received reminders of the penalty charge notice which went from £60 to £90.

Ms Carlson said: “We are a very small charity with only two staff and this kind of thing is very time-consuming and we have better things to do with our time.”

Council spokesman Oscar Mortali said: “In this instance a system error meant this vehicle’s registration was not identified on the council’s list of exempt vehicles and a ticket, dated March 13, was sent in error.

“This ticket has been subsequently cancelled and we apologise to Headway for the inconvenience caused.”

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The work will also take into account other potential impacts on traffic levels, such as the introduction of new park and ride facilities as well as considering different options and scenarios for the bridge, bypass and potential costs involved